When I first came across that finding, I laughed and thought, Yeah, that sounds about right.

I can scarcely remember the last time I received a callback after leaving a voicemail, and I am fairly confident that most other SDR’s in my industry would say something similar.
You are probably wondering if this is truly typical within most organizations – and if so, why are we talking about leaving cold voicemails?

Does cold calling and cold voicemail work?

When used correctly, voicemails are one of the quickest ways for a team to increase response rates and get the attention of their prospects.

While voicemail alone does not yield callbacks, it has the ability to increase response rates by over 11% when paired properly with targeted emails, according to TOPO’s Sales Best Practices: Voicemail Builder report.

For something that takes less than 30 seconds, it seems like a no brainer, right?

Keep these tips in mind if you are struggling to get your demo numbers up, or if you are simply having a difficult time getting a foot in the door with a prospect.

Here are some actual cold voicemails I’ve left – and why they have worked well for me.

Example 1: Use known company details

“Hey Jeff, this is Dave, with DiscoverOrg. I saw that you manage the team that hunts down ERP projects on the East Coast. I came across a company right in your backyard who is looking to migrate their ERP system – and it looks like a home run for what you guys are doing there. Grace Taylor is their VP of Network Infrastructure and the person you should be talking to.

I’m shooting you over an email right now with some of the details. Feel free to reply there if it hits the mark. Thanks, Jeff.”

Your voicemail should point towards an email that you will send to the prospect immediately following your call.

The best way to get the prospect to open your email, and, ultimately, to engage with you, is to give them a reason to look for your email in the first place.

This doesn’t happen by pitching them in a voicemail. Instead, do a bit of research on the prospect and send them something that will resonate with them specifically.

In this instance, a quick glance at the LinkedIn profile of my prospect of Jeff revealed his territory and job description – which was all I needed to know in order to leave a targeted voicemail.

I kept it short – TOPO recommends no longer than 23 seconds – and spoke about a real, specific project that could result in a valuable opportunity for Jeff.

This voicemail helped me land a meeting with a hard-to-reach sales leader who had been ignoring my emails prior to this message.

Jeff responded:

“Wow, do you have more similar projects? Also, do you have the ability to see what software the companies are running? Dave, I’m out of office until later next week. Let’s connect and setup a meeting.”

I leave these kinds of messages multiple times a day, and I see a good response rate when paired with a targeted email.

When you take the time to understand the prospect’s individual responsibilities and job functions, your message is a lot less likely to fall on deaf ears.

Example 2: Company details unknown

This one does the trick for companies in heavily competitive markets or who compete heavily against another organization.

Hey Brad – this is Dave with DiscoverOrg. Hey, I was on the website for {major competitor} and it looks they have T-Mobile as a customer, and I imagine that you guys play in the same space. In case you want to take a shot at T-Mobile as well, I’m going to drop you an email with part of an org chart where I can literally show you who’s in charge of big data over there, complete with a direct-dial phone number, an email address, and the other technologies they’re utilizing.

I’ll use the subject line “T-Mobile Org Chart.” Feel free to respond there and I can shed some more light.

Again, Dave with DiscoverOrg, looking forward to your reply.

This voicemail certainly hit the mark, because Brad gave me a call back an hour later, asking to connect for a walkthrough.

Example 3: When company details are unknown

Here’s another example, based on the same TOPO research, from our Director of Sales Development Jake Shaffren:

Hey Gabe – this is Jake with DiscoverOrg. We’ve been working with companies like {Competitor 1} and {Competitor 2} to drive pipeline growth and help make sure the team is in front of decision makers.

As an example, I found a recent real-time trigger: Looks like Arconic is doing some work around Cyber Security and Threat Detection. Shannon Smith is the manager of Global security, and she’s the person to talk to.

Sending you an email too. feel free to reply there if you want Shannon’s contact info. Again, Jake with DiscoverOrg, look forward to your reply.

Example 4: Unknown company, unknown competitors

If there are no standout competitors, you can easily modify this approach by swapping out a few words and phrases:

“Hey Sara – this is Dave with DiscoverOrg. Hey, I was on your {Company} website and saw that you guys are working with AWS and RackSpace.

Coincidentally, they are both clients of ours and we help them connect with decision makers at their target accounts by providing them with direct contact information. I am going to shoot you over an email with some data on CIO’s right in your backyard there in Houston – so keep an eye out for my email titled “CIO’s in Houston” and get back to me there if it hits the mark.

Again, Dave with DiscoverOrg – looking forward to hearing back from you.”

Sara was a territory sales rep who did not have the authority to make a decision on our product. But after seeing the sort of intelligence we offer, she forwarded the email to her boss, who called me to learn more.

Example 5: Unknown company, unknown competitors

Here’s another example, in which an SDR identifies a customer from the target company website and name-drops a similar company:

Hey John, this is Jake with DiscoverOrg. Hey, I was on the website for Hortonworks and it looks they have T-Mobile listed as a customer. I would think MapR plays in the same space.

In case you’d want to take a crack at T-Mobile too – I’ll drop you an email with part of an org chart where I can literally show you who’s in charge of Big Data over there – with a direct-dial phone number, an email address, and what other technologies they have installed.

I’ll use the subject line ‘T-Mobile Org Chart.’

Feel free to respond to my email and I can shed some more light, or get some other company profiles in your hands, too.

Again, Jake with DiscoverOrg. I look forward to your reply.

It’s OK to leave a callback number in your message if you think it best; however, your call to action should always point the prospect towards your email (which should contain your phone number anyway).

Leaving a good voicemail is not hard. It takes one or two minutes of research prior to the call, and in some cases, a 20-second glance at the prospect’s LinkedIn or company website to arm yourself with some specifics.

Keep it short, provide value – and show them you know what you are talking about!

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About the author

Dave Harris

As an Outbound Sales Development Representative, David Harris focuses on developing relationships with prospective clients. Prior to joining DiscoverOrg, David worked as an Account Executive at Merchant Services Firm in Portland, OR. David has a Bachelors in Marketing from Northwest Nazarene University.